Palesitnian Rights Action Alert & upcoming Events April 2013

Sat Apr 20 09:04:47 PDT 2013

Mark your calendar:
    Next Sunday, April 28: Protest "Celebration of Israel":  65 years of
ethnic cleansing, occupation and apartheid is enough!  Details and other
events below.

Take Action.
    In March, Senator Barbara Boxer introduced S 462, "To enhance the
strategic partnership between the United States and Israel." The full text
of the bill is included below. 
   There are many grounds to object to this bill, including that it
continues to affirms U.S. support for Israel's occupation, illegal
settlements, and violations of the rights of the Palestinian people.  
   The bill also would include Israel as one of the countries for which
there is a reciprocal no-visa requirement, EXCEPT that all of the other
countries with whom the U.S. shares this relationship are not allowed to
discriminate against U.S. citizens.  Israel would be allowed to continue its
profiling, harassment, and denial of entry into Palestine's West Bank or
Gaza those U.S. citizens it considers a potential security risk, i.e. those
who are Palestinian, Arab, Muslim, or activists for Palestinian rights.
Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza have NO control over their own
borders - who enters and leaves is determined by the Israeli military.
    Call Senator Boxer: 202-224-3553 (Wash DC) or 916- 448-2787 (Sacramento)
or email her:  http://www.boxer.senate.gov/en/contact/policycomments.cfm

Upcoming Events:

Monday, Apr 22, 12:30 - 1:50pm, Lecture by Alison Weir, journalist and
founder of If Americans Knew on Palestine/Israel. Room D-5, Sierra College,
5000 Rocklin Rd, Rocklin. Free & open to public. FMI:
smcdonald at sierracollege.edu. 

Monday, Apr 22, 6pm, Free film:  <http://www.kinolorber.com/5brokencameras/>
5 Broken Cameras. Redwood Rm, Student Union, Sac State, 6000 J St,
Sacramento.  <https://www.facebook.com/SJP.Sac.State> On Facebook. FMI:
916-267-8087. 
Wednesday, Apr 24, 7pm, Free film: Lemon Tree tells the story of widow Salma
Zidane, who lives in the occupied West Bank and earns a meager living from a
small grove of lemon trees planted by her family. When the Israeli minister
of defense builds a house adjacent to Salma's, her lemon trees are deemed a
security risk. Sol Collective, 2574 21st St, Sacramento. Donations
requested. FMI: sacramento at jewishvoiceforpeace.org
Sunday, Apr 28, 10am - 2pm, 65 Years of Israeli Occupation and Apartheid is
enough: Protest Celebrating Israel event. U.S. taxpayers give over $8
million a day to Israel, enabling it to continue violating international law
and the human rights of the Palestinian people. The event, which goes from
10am-2pm, wrongly conflates Judaism and Jewish values with the state of
Israel, which continues to torture Palestinian political prisoners, steal
Palestinian land for illegal settlements and kill unarmed demonstrators.
Meet 9:45am at 20th & L Sts, Sacramento. FMI: sacramentobds at gmail.com;
916-448-7157. 

Sunday, Apr 28, 7pm, Comedian and songster  <http://www.davelippman.com>
Dave Lippman returns to his former Sacramento stompin' grounds with new
songs and his arch nemesis Wild Bill Bailout. Sliding scale $8-15; portion
of proceeds will benefit SacBDS & the Sol Collective, 2574 21st St,
Sacramento. FMI: SacramentoBDS at gmail.com. 

Saturdays in May:  Boycott SodaStream Bannering and Leafleting, FMI:
sacramentobds at gmail.com.  SodaStream is made in an illegal Israeli
settlement on stolen Palestinian land in violation of international law.

Text of Senate Bill 462: http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/113/s462/text
S 462 IS
113th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 462
To enhance the strategic partnership between the United States and Israel.
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
March 5, 2013
Mrs. BOXER (for herself, Mr. BLUNT, Mr. MANCHIN, Mr. CORNYN, Mr. CARDIN, and
Ms. COLLINS) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and
referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations
  _____  

A BILL
To enhance the strategic partnership between the United States and Israel.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United
States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the 'United States-Israel Strategic Partnership Act
of 2013'.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress makes the following findings:
(1) The people and the Governments of the United States and Israel share a
deep and unbreakable bond, forged by over 60 years of shared interests and
shared values.
(2) Today, the people and Governments of the United States and Israel are
facing a dynamic and rapidly changing security environment in the Middle
East and North Africa, necessitating deeper cooperation on a range of
defense, security, and intelligence matters.
(3) From Gaza, Hamas continues to deny Israel's right to exist and persists
in firing rockets indiscriminately at population centers in Israel.
(4) Hezbollah--with support from Iran--continues to stockpile rockets and
may be seeking to exploit the tragic and volatile security situation within
Syria.
(5) The Government of Iran continues to pose a grave threat to the region
and the world at large with its reckless uranium enrichment program and
defiance of multiple United Nations Security Council resolutions.
(6) The civil war in Syria is threatening the security of Syria's chemical
weapons arsenal, which could be deployed against its own people or fall into
the hands of terrorists.
(7) Given these challenges, it is imperative that the United States continue
to deepen cooperation with allies like Israel in pursuit of shared policy
objectives.
SEC. 3. STATEMENT OF POLICY.
It is the policy of the United States--
(1) to reaffirm the unwavering support of the United States for the security
of Israel as a Jewish state;
(2) to reaffirm the principals and objectives enshrined in the United
States-Israel Enhanced Security Cooperation Act of 2012 (Public Law 112-150)
and ensure its implementation to the fullest extent;
(3) to reaffirm the importance of the 2007 United States-Israel Memorandum
of Understanding on United States assistance to Israel and the semi-annual
Strategic Dialogue between the United States and Israel;
(4) to pursue every opportunity to deepen cooperation with Israel on a range
of critical issues including defense, homeland, energy, and cyber security;
(5) to continue to provide Israel with robust security assistance, including
for the development, procurement, and maintenance of the Iron Dome Missile
Defense System; and
(6) to support the Government of Israel in its ongoing efforts to reach a
negotiated political settlement with the Palestinian people that results in
two states living side-by-side in peace and security.
SEC. 4. SENSE OF CONGRESS ON ISRAEL AS A MAJOR STRATEGIC PARTNER.
It is the sense of Congress that Israel is a Major Strategic Partner.
SEC. 5. EXTENSION OF WAR RESERVES STOCKPILE AUTHORITY.
(a) Department of Defense Appropriations Act, 2005- Section 12001(d) of the
Department of Defense Appropriations Act, 2005 (Public Law 108-287; 118
Stat. 1011) is amended by striking 'more than 10 years after' and inserting
'more than 11 years after'.
(b) Foreign Assistance Act of 1961- Section 514(b)(2)(A) of the Foreign
Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2321h(b)(2)(A)) is amended by striking
'and 2014' and inserting ', 2014, and 2015'.
SEC. 6. ELIGIBILITY OF ISRAEL FOR THE STRATEGIC TRADE AUTHORIZATION
EXCEPTION TO CERTAIN EXPORT CONTROL LICENSING REQUIREMENTS.
(a) Finding- Congress finds that Israel--
(1) has declared its unilateral adherence to the Missile Technology Control
Regime and the Wassenaar Arrangement on Export Controls for Conventional
Arms and Dual-Use Goods and Technologies;
(2) is a party to--
(A) the Convention on Prohibitions or Restrictions on the Use of Certain
Conventional Weapons which may be Deemed to be Excessively Injurious or to
Have Indiscriminate Effects, signed at Geneva October 10, 1980;
(B) the Protocol for the Prohibition of the Use in War of Asphyxiating,
Poisonous or Other Gases, and of Bacteriological Methods of Warfare, signed
at Geneva June 17, 1925; and
(C) the Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material, adopted
at Vienna on October 26, 1979; and
(3) is a country with a low risk of diversion of items subject to export
controls.
(b) Eligibility for Strategic Trade Authorization Exception- The Secretary
of Commerce shall take steps to include Israel in the list of countries
eligible for the strategic trade authorization exception under section
740.20(c)(1) of title 15, Code of Federal Regulations, to the requirement
for a license for the export, reexport, or in-country transfer of an item
subject to controls under the Export Administration Regulations, consistent
with the obligations of the United States pursuant to international
agreements.
SEC. 7. ENERGY, WATER, HOMELAND SECURITY, AGRICULTURE, AND ALTERNATIVE FUEL
TECHNOLOGIES.
(a) In General- The President is authorized to carry out United
States-Israel cooperative activities and to provide assistance promoting
cooperation in the fields of energy, water, homeland security, agriculture,
and alternative fuel technologies.
(b) Requirements- In carrying out subsection (a), the President is
authorized to share and exchange with Israel research, technology,
intelligence, information, equipment, and personnel that the President
determines will advance the national security interests of the United States
and is consistent with the Strategic Dialogue and pertinent provisions of
law--
(1) by enhancing scientific cooperation between Israel and the United
States; or
(2) by the sale, lease, exchange in kind, or other techniques the President
determines to be suitable.
SEC. 8. REPORT ON ESTABLISHMENT OF UNITED STATES-ISRAEL CENTER OF EXCELLENCE
ON CYBER SECURITY.
Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the
President shall submit to Congress a report on the feasibility and
advisability of establishing a joint United States-Israel Cyber Security
Center for the purposes of sharing and advancing technologies related to the
prevention of cybercrimes.
SEC. 9. DESIGNATION OF ISRAEL AS VISA WAIVER PROGRAM COUNTRY.
Section 217(c)(2) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C.
1187(c)(2)) is amended--
(1) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by inserting 'subparagraph (G)
and' after 'Except as provided in'; and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
'(G) ISRAEL- The State of Israel shall be designated as a program country on
the date on which the Secretary of Homeland Security, after consultation
with the Secretary of State, certifies that the Government of Israel--
'(i) has complied with all of the requirements set forth in subparagraphs
(B) through (F); and
'(ii) has made every reasonable effort, without jeopardizing the security of
the State of Israel, to ensure that reciprocal travel privileges are
extended to all United States citizens.'.
SEC. 10. REPORT ON IMPLEMENTATION OF SECTION 4 OF THE UNITED STATES-ISRAEL
ENHANCED SECURITY COOPERATION ACT OF 2012.
Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the
President shall submit to the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate,
the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives, and the
Committees on Armed Services of the Senate and the House of Representatives
a comprehensive report on current and future efforts undertaken by the
President to fulfill the objectives of section 4 of the United States-Israel
Enhanced Security Cooperation Act (22 U.S.C. 8603).

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